War Eagle

Recently finished the install of an OBA system with air horns and a PacBrake. I have completed a write up of the install (with pictures) and I am going to start an new thread showing the install. Should be up shortly.

W&F That's quite a story! More power to you. I think it's great when we can inspire others as well as be inspired by others.

I don't know a lot about the HY35 but I am thinking it has a 9cm2 exhaust housing where as the HX35 on my truck had a 12cm2 opening. So if the HY35 and the HX35 flowed the same amount of air (and I don't know if they do or not) then you could definitely feel a bit of lag because the velocity of the exhaust gas spinning the turbo would slow down some on a bigger exhaust housing. Thus the spool up would be slower. This might be the issue you are noticing on the slower boost. So I would first verify what you have for a housing on the HX35 compared to the HY35. You can even get a HX35 witha 14cm2 exhaust which would even creat more lag in the spool up when compared to a 9cm2 housing.. I run and HX35/40 hybrid with a Quadzilla ZXT+ (which is a 65HP chip) on 14cm2 housing and I had a little bit of lag on the spool up because of the change from the stock HX35 with 12cm2 housing to the larger 14cm2. But when I installed my RV275 sticks on my 2000 with auto and positrac rearend it made all the difference in the world. With more fuel I can lit the turbo early and I can easily spin the tires from a dead stop non boosted launch. I could never do that with the stock HX35 and Quad ZXT+. My top end has also much improved. When I kick it down for passing it gets your attention. Of course you might have other issues working against you but if your overall performance is worse with the HX35 then I would suggest the first place you start to check out is the exhaust housing sizes.

Sure, I would like to get the tires for less money but need the weight carrying capacity. Can't get any LT rated tire (at least that I could find) to carry the load. Had to go to commercial 19.5 or larger.

There'll be dancing in the house in about a week!

Bosch Motor Sport. These are marine injectors. All brand new Bosch (no reman or reused parts). They can be fitted with various HP nozzles and spray angles but come stock for the 385 HP cummins marine engine ( I think I have my numbers correct on this). DAP usually has these as do other vendors. I got mine from USA Freedom Diesel (Montana) with the DDP nozzles and flow tested. I am very happy with them in my truck.

In general adding timing (as compared to stock timing) will help with mpg's. In the Smarty programing I believe that each level of Catcher (default mode) will add higher timing levels. For example (I made these numbers up for illustration only) Catcher 3 with the highest timing level may have timing at 15 degrees advance, Catcher 5 may have 17degrees, Catcher 7 may have 19 degrees and Catcher 9 may have 21 degrees. My personal experience is that timing may need to be adjusted down if you are towing heavy (to help control egt's etc) but if you are not heavily loaded advanced timing will help with mpg's. If you drive your truck hard and maybe race with it, highly advanced timing will generate more heat and can go to the extreme and melt pistons etc. Guages can help you monitor your operating conditions so that you don't abuse or cause harm to your engine. As an example I have 50hp upgraded injectors and I run on Catcher 9 with the most advanced timing I can get and get the best mpg's (22+ hand calculated on a CR). I also have guages so I know the operation conditions of my engine. I don't drive with a heavy foot and don't use the raw power of Catcher 9 (+ 210 hp) but take advanced of all the other tuning parameters that Catcher 9 provides my engine. So if mpg's is your goal and you don't drive your truck hard, then try changing the timing level in Catcher 5 and see if you can see a difference in any of the settings and just monitor the operating parameters of your engine. I would even try the higher levels of Smarty and do the same thing to find out what works well with your truck. I don't know what kind of tranny you have in your truck but if it is an auto just know that a heavy foot in the higher levels of Catcher will fry an auto if it is not built for the power. Just because you run level 9 doesn't mean you will wreack your transmission. It's all in the discipline of your foot.

Ya, to the tune of $300-$400k.

I run the BMS ones with the 50HP DDP nozzles and they are a great improvent over my original stock injectors. No smoke and a nice power increase and I have seen 22+ mpg on several trips to Portland and back. Frm what I can tell in talking to other folks, that is great mileage for an '05 CR.

The Smarty S03 allows you to change the timing setting by selecting settings between 1 and 4. So you can select the Catcher number you want and then you can select something like 'make adjustments' and then set the timing settings between 1-4. I think 4 is the highest timing setting. I run an S06 but on the S03 I believe the timing setting of 1=stock, 2=advanced, 3=moderate and 4=greatest.

I think Dorkweed and AH64ID have both installed the SpynTech hub conversion kit. I have also purchased the Spyn Tech Shorty kit for my truck but haven't started the install yet but plan to get it done this spring. There are several manufacturers and people have various preferences on why one kit is chosen over the other, but I have read pros and cons on each brand. In the end you will have to pick the one that you like the best. You will spend something north of $1600 for the Spyn Tech and even more for the other major brands. I bought my kit in December because I had heard there was an upcoming price increase and I have talked to enough people about the Spyn Tech and they have been happy with them. I felt their price was a little better than the others so I went with that kit.

I did the transmission ugrade on my 47RE (2000 Ram) and it was a great improvement. My original trans gave me just shy of 170k and I have nearly 70k since the rebuild and it has been rock solid. Every performance parameter you can measure has improved with this upgraded trans.

Ya, when you get into the commercial truck tire sizes the money required increases. The wheel and tire carrying capability go up and so does the cost to get it. These wheels are rated at 4500 puonds per wheel and the tires in LRG are rated at 4900+ pounds per tire. Just can't get anything standard (tire or wheel) in any size under 19.5 that is rated to carry that weight. I have not read any reviews about the various brands and style of 19.5 tires that seems to say you will have great snow and ice traction with these tires. Now traction tread (drive tires) will certainly work better that hiway tread (steer tires) in the snow and ice. But I believe there are much better performing snow and ice tires available in the standard LT tire sizes of 16" and 17" etc. So in my case I made the decision to keep my 17" tires with Michelin LTX M/S2 tires and use them for my winter driving when I am not carrying heavy loads in my truck. I decided to put a hiway tread (steer tire) on my 19.5 for the rest of the year when I need to carry heavy loads. The hiway tread has longer life and the cost is lower than the traction tread in the 19.5 size. Can't tell you how long they will last but based on my reseach and reading reviews and talking to users I am looking for 100k+ on these tires. However, it is entirely possible that these tires may need to be replaced based on age rather than mileage if I don't put something like 20k+ a year on them.

Ya, tell me about it! The mounting and balancing on the commercial truck tires are more complex than the LT tires and costs much more than the same work on a LT tire. The tires (depending on brand, style and grade) in the 19.5 can run up to $700 per tire. But tires aren't cheap. Even the Michelin 265x70Rx17 LTX M/S2 tires that I have been running are pushing $1300 for 5 of them. The commercial truck tires get better life than the LT tires. It is not uncommon for commercial truck tires to get 100k-200k miles depending how they are used. I don't know for sure how many miles I will get with these tires yet but I am fully expecting it to be in the range of 100k +. But time will tell. If this is true then most LT owners will have bought at least two sets of tires in this same time frame.

Wheels were $180 each at Discount tires x 5 = $900 + the govenors tax. Tires were $1750 for 5 with mounting and balance at Bruneel Tire. Total was under $2700 for my install.

The Vision Type 81 wheels have zero offset. They do stick out of the wheel well some. See below picture. . Many people will add a mudflap to keep the crap off the body.

Well I have finally got the 19.5s installed. I went with the Vision Type 81 wheels in bright aluminum. I had the wheels powder coated in clear and boy did they turn out nice. I believe this coating will make the wheels easier to clean and will protect them from road crap and chemicals. Sure beats the clear coat that comes on the wheels. I decided to go with a steer tread rather than a traction drive tread as I am only planning to use the 19.5s in the spring, summer and fall. In the winter I will put on my 17s with Michelin LTX M/S2 tires as I won't be carrying the heavy camper in the winter time and the Michelins work very well in the snow and ice. So I chose the Hankook AH11 in 245x70Rx19.5 and in LRG. First impressions are that I can feel the road a bit more than my Michelins. Can't tell any difference in starting and stopping, but in reality I haven't been driving it hard. I have about 100 miles on them and drove it on the freeway as well. Drives straight as a string. I was a little concerned in that some people have reported the 19.5s don't seem to track well until they have 1k-2k miles on them. It gives the truck a different look. Fills the wheel well out.

Sounds like some folks really had some bad luck with VW's. I have had absolutely great performance and out of the two VW's I have purchased. 2001 TDI (bought brand new) and it now has 143k miles on it and a 2003 Jetta wagon with the 1.8T (bought at 50k miles) and now has 110k miles on it. I also have two of my flying buddies that have Jetta's and they have been absolutely trouble free. I do all my own work including the timing belt change. The belt change was made at 100k on both of my cars. If mileage is your focus then the 99-03 TDI is the best choice.

I have a friend that has a 92 12v, 4x4 Cummins standard cab with 5spd that is considering selling his truck. He has 150k on the clock and it has the original injectors and pump. It is a 3/4 ton model. It has had the front end rebuilt and has 4 new tires with a fresh alignment. The running gear seems to be in top shape and the body is straight. The plastic inside is crappy looking from the classical UV damage. The headliner is coming loose in several places and the paint on the cab roof is peeling in several spots. Everything things seems to work. It has an electric winch on the front. He asked me what I thought it could go for and I don't really have a clue. Can any one give me some advice on what to tell him this thing should go for?

Not sure if your question was more like "what can the insight do" or more like "what are you planning to monitor"? SO while I am not answering for mr.mindless I'll add my . I run the CTS insight in an '05 Dodge and it can monoitor the following items with out any add on probes, sensors etc. : Battery Voltage Intake Air Temperature (IAT) Engine Oil Pressure (EOP) Engine Coolant Temperature (ECT) Engine Oil Temperature (EOT) Transmission Fluid Temperature (TFT) Miles Per Hour (MPH) Miles Per Gallon (MPG) Revolutions Per Minute (RPM) 1/4-mile and 0 - 60 times Transmission gear (if running an auto) Boost pressure Rail pressure Engine load Reads DTS codes and can reset them as well Insight can also read advanced data like exhaust gas temperature (EGT) when adding and EGT probe, various additional pressures by adding pressure sensors. All data can be viewed in either numeric (up to 8 items monitored at once) or analog gauge style (up to 3 items at once). It also has alarms that you can preset and it has data logging capability. It also has the capability to adjust Smarty PoD and some EFI Live settings if you use those tuners on your truck. It has maintenance reminders as well. Now since the CTS Insight hooks up to your OBDII: I monitor boost, trans temp, mpgs, engine load,rail pressure and transmission gear. I have installed an additional pressure sensor and use it to monitor lift pump pressure and I have also installed an EGT Probe and monitor exhaust temps.

So on the stock tune then the higher (overstock) power is the combination of your new injectors and cam? Does the turbo really add anything or is it just more of an enabler? How do these numbers compare to what you were at before the engine mis-hap. Did you have stock numbers from before the engine rebuild (of course that would have been stock injectors + cam and turbo)?

I have an '01 Jetta GLS TDI w/ 5sp. I bought it new and went to Texas to pick it up because I got a much better deal there than anywhere else in the good ol USA. I have 142k on mine now. The only engine related issue I have had is I lost the mass flow sensor at around 30k miles but that was a warranty issue. I am running the stock clutch, replace the tires once and the brakes once in this time frame. I bought this car for my commuter car and I get excellent mpg's. I have kept records on every tank of fuel I have used over these years and my average mpg is a little over 48. I have had high's in the low 50's on long trips and lows in the high 30's in the winter driving where there is a lot of idling and winter fuel. The stock engine in the 99-03 body style is rated at 90hp. It is pretty peppy and is hard to tell it is a diesel. People will often ask if it is a diesel when they see me using the green covered pump handle at the refueling station. About 2 years ago I chipped it with a device that claims 30% increase in hp. What I noticed is a nice increase in acceleration performance and I get improved mpgs. I made a recent 700+ mile trip to Fresno California from Idaho and got 58 mpg on the trip down and 54 mpg on the trip back. I think it was with the 2004 models that VW made some changes to the fuel system, increased the displacement and of course the HP went up a little but the mileage dropped off on this engine. Then VW went for a year or two without producing any TDI's because of trying to meet the new diesel emmission requirements and then re-introduced the TDI once they were able to meet the new emmission requirements. I think the re-intro was around the 2010 model year but I am not exactly certain if that is the correct time frame. This new TDI of course has increased displacement as well as increased emmission controls hung on the engine. HP is also up and as you would guess mpg's are also down. The TDI engine has been the same whether in the Jetta or the Passat. As mentioned by W & F the back seat of the Passat has more leg room than the Jetta but it doesn't get any better mpg if that is your specific mission. One thing about the Passat is that you get a little higher end ride than the Jetta. Another thing that the Passat has offered in the past is a 4 wheel drive option (called 4-Motion) which hasn't been available on the Jetta version. I am not sure if 4-motion was available in the Passat when you have the TDI but I thought it was. I have never had an auto so I can't offer any advice on how well they hold up. So my advice to you is if you want the best potential mpg then look for the 99-03 version TDI. A stick will get you 3-5+ higher mpgs than the auto version. If you want the most front and back seat room then choose the Passat version for those years. If the back seat room is not as important to you then the Jetta body style is a little more sleek looking than the Passat (but that is just my personal opinion). From time to time I have seen these years for sale that have less than 100k on them. But I have also seen junk as well. The VW has been a solid car and I wouldn't be afraid of buying one that has been taken care of. Good luck in your search.

"Never knew emoticans could say so much. Could I have another please." Sure, I'll oblige! :punish: :spank: There! Feel better now.

I have seen an article where a dimpled plastic overlay has been developed to put on the front end of vehicles to created a similar effect that is gained by the dimples of a golf ball. This overlay stuff is something similar to the thicker overlay that you put on your headlight and foglight lenses to protect them from rock chips etc. I think the theory is that a vehicle is more of a blunt nose (like a golf ball) and was expected to see some improvement in the reduction of drag. Can't specifically remember if there really was any improvement seen in the tests or not. I probably could guess that it wasn't significant or we probably would heard something about it and seen if for sale somewhere.

I have a plow on my ATV and I also subscribe to the principle of using a blade that is wider than the track of the vehicle. I use a 60 inch blade and when I have it fully canted (right or left) it clears a path thats easy for me to keep the track within the newly plowed area.